HC Deb 30 January 2002 vol 379 c417W
Mr. Bercow

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of people in(a) the constituency of Buckingham and (b) total UK population claim (i) incapacity benefit, (ii) the children's tax credit, (ii) bereavement benefit, (iv) attendance allowance, (v) council tax credit, (vi) invalid care allowance, (vii) housing benefit and (viii) disability living allowance. [22535]

Mr. Nicholas Brown

Population figures are not available for parliamentary constituencies. The available information is in the table.

Percentage of GB population in receipt of benefits1
Benefit Great Britain2
Incapacity benefit 4.2
Bereavement benefit3 0.5
Attendance allowance 2.2
Disability living allowance 3.9
Council tax benefit 10.0
Housing benefit 8.0
Invalid care allowance 0.7
1Children's tax credit is the responsibility of the Inland Revenue.
2Figures for Northern Ireland are not included. Social security matters in Northern Ireland are the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Assembly.
3Bereavement benefit includes bereavement allowance and widowed parent's allowance which were introduced for new claims from April 2001 and widow's pension or widowed mother's allowance.

Sources:

Incapacity benefit–5 per cent. sample at 31 August 2001.

Bereavement benefit–100 per cent. count at 31 August 2001.

Disability living allowance and attendance allowance—100 per cent. count at 31 August 2001

Housing benefit and council tax benefit–100 per cent. case load stock-count at 10 May 2001.

Invalid care allowance–100 per cent. extract of the computer system at 30 September 2001.

Population data—Office for National Statistics, Population Estimates Unit (estimated resident population mid–2000 based on the 1991 census).